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In his State of the State speech, California governor Gavin Newsom said he asked his team to develop a proposal for a new data dividend for California, according to a copy of the speech provided by the San Diego Union Tribune. The governor said that the move was inspired by the idea that the state's consumers should be able to share in the wealth that is created from their data, according to the Union Tribune. "California is proud to be home to technology companies determined to change the world. But companies that make billions of dollars collecting, curating and monetizing our personal data have a duty to protect it," Newsom said. "Consumers have a right to know and control how their data is being used." Major players in the tech space include Amazon (AMZN), Alphabet (GOOG), Microsoft (MSFT), Twitter (TWTR), Apple (AAPL), IBM (IBM), Intel (INTC), Facebook (FB), and Oracle (ORCL). Reference Link

PayPal acceptance growth still best of any digital wallet, says Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley analyst James Faucette said the most common question he has gotten for the past several weeks on PayPal (PYPL) has been, "Why is the stock underperforming so much since the beginning of 2019?" He believes PayPal's recent plateauing probably has more to do with other stocks than anything stock-specific, stating that Visa (V) and MasterCard (MA) "really have arguably had their best buying opportunities in years" and he would not be surprised to see PayPal "tread water" until those two stocks retake their respective highs. Another common thread in talks has been increasing concern that other digital wallets from Amazon (AMZN), Apple (AAPL) and others may be closing the acceptance gap, though he thinks that "speculation is flatly wrong." Dating back to March 2016, PayPal has had the fastest acceptance growth among all digital wallets, outpacing all the other wallets that he can reliably track, Faucette tells investors. He maintains an Overweight rating and $99 price target on PayPal shares.

02/08/19

SUSQ

02/08/19UPGRADETarget $30SUSQPositive

Air Transport Services upgraded to Positive, target raised to $31 at Susquehanna

As reported previously, Susquehanna analyst Christopher Stathoulopoulos upgraded Air Transport Services (ATSG) to Positive from Neutral. The analyst cited its extended agreement with Amazon (AZMN), which puts its growth still in the early-innings as he sees low double-digit block hour growth in 2019 as achievable. Stathoulopoulos raised his price target to $30 from $21 on Air Transport Services shares.

In a research earlier today titled "Encroachment Is a 5-Yard Penalty," DA Davidson analyst Tom Forte reiterated an Underperform rating on Wayfair with a $60 12-18 month price target. The stock in morning trading is up 1% to $120.89. Amazon.com (AMZN) announced yesterday that it was launching two private-label furniture brands in the U.K., Forte wrote to investors. The analyst sees the news as "yet another indication" of Amazon's intent to expand its efforts in the home category, including furniture. Yesterday's announcement follows Amazon's decision last December to lower third-party selling fees for the furniture category, the analyst points out. Forte views Amazon's efforts to ramp its sales in the home category as an increasing threat for Wayfair. Further, the analyst is monitoring the potential sale of Overstock's (OSTK) legacy home e-commerce business, as he thinks a sale to a large bricks and mortar retailer could also result in additional competition for Wayfair.

02/12/19

LOOP

02/12/19NO CHANGELOOPBuy

NEMF liquidation could be boost for LTL companies, says Loop Capital

After New England Motor Freight, or NEMF, announced that it was liquidating, Loop Capital analyst Jeffrey Kauffman noted that the company was the 19th largest LTL carrier by revenues in 2018 and had a reputation as more of a discounter. He believes NEMF's customers, which reportedly includes Amazon (AMZN), will be challenged to find capacity easily with other LTL carriers given the current tightness in the market. The analyst, who said the liquidation should buoy LTL companies, has a Buy rating on YRC Worldwide (YRCW).

Deutsche Bank analyst Lloyd Walmsley raised his price target for Alphabet to $1,380 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares following last night's Q4 results. Alphabet reported a mixed quarter, with Sites revenue excluding currency modestly ahead of estimates but disappointing operating income, weighed down in part by unusual compensation linked to Other Bets, Walmsley tells investors in a post-earnings research note titled "Strong revs, miss on EBIT; thank u, next." On the positive side, the company reiterated optimism on its ability to sustain sales growth and the expectation that headcount growth would slow modestly in 2019 and capex growth would moderate significantly in 2019, adds the analyst.

02/05/19

UBSW

02/05/19NO CHANGETarget $1420UBSWBuy

Alphabet produced strong revenues against slowdown fears, says UBS

UBS analyst Eric Sheridan said Alphabet produced solid revenue growth against fears of a slowdown and macro impact to digital advertising. He noted operating income margin volatility might detract from the revenue story but he sees investors better understanding the need for investment. He also said signals of moderating headcount and capex should point to relief from recent volatility. Sheridan reiterated his Buy rating and raised his price target to $1,420 from $1,400 on Alphabet shares.

Morgan Stanley analyst Brian Nowak said Alphabet's Q4 report highlights the strength of the company's core and portfolio of assets, though it also reinforces how improved disclosure or transparency may be needed for "material share-price appreciation." A company-wide EBIT miss of 4% compared to consensus was due to a larger than expected Other Bets loss, said Nowak, who noted that he attributes the larger EBIT loss to Other Bets equity compensation programs that are tied to long-term value creation. He also reminded investors that these compensation rewards are tied to long-term asset values appreciating. Nowak, who believes it may take revisions or better disclosure for the market to appreciate that Other Bets are strong and appreciating in value, keeps an Overweight rating and $1,500 price target on Alphabet shares.

GOOGLAlphabet Class A

$1,131.88

29.88 (2.71%)

02/05/19

RHCO

02/05/19NO CHANGETarget $1350RHCOBuy

Alphabet price target lowered to $1,350 from $1,450 at SunTrust

SunTrust analyst Youssef Squali lowered his price target on Alphabet to $1,350 after its "mixed" Q4 results that featured a "strong top line" and lower margins driven by rising expenses. The analyst is keeping his Buy rating however, stating that the company's vore business of Search and especially YouTube are performing at "impressive growth levels', with added support coming from the scaling segments like Cloud, Play, and hardware and emerging ones like Waymo. Squali expects Alphabet to sustain its mid-teen growth over the next several years with a focus on incremental profit and free cash flows, making the stock "an attractive growth story at a compelling valuation".

02/05/19

BMOC

02/05/19NO CHANGETarget $1100BMOCMarket Perform

Alphabet price target lowered to $1,100 from $1,135 at BMO Capital

BMO Capital analyst Daniel Salmon lowered his price target on Alphabet to $1,100 and kept his Market Perform rating after its Q4 results, saying the company's margins are trending lower as its revenue mix shifts to lower-margin businesses. The analyst adds that Alphabet's rising expenses related to "Other Bets" have become the latest variable challenging profitability that reinforces his cautious margins view. While he sees Alphabet's sum-of-the-parts valuation as attractive, Salmon contends that it is not yet sufficient to drive a bullish thesis.

02/05/19

FBCO

02/05/19NO CHANGETarget $1400FBCOOutperform

Alphabet price target lowered to $1,400 from $1,450 at Credit Suisse

Credit Suisse analyst Stephen Ju lowered his price target for Alphabet to $1,400 from $1,450 following quarterly results as he increases his revenue, OpEx, and CapEx estimates. The analyst reiterates an Outperform rating on the shares as his thesis remains unchanged, given ongoing monetization improvements in Search through product updates, larger-than-expected contribution from Google's larger non-Search businesses, optionality for value creation from new monetization initiatives such as Maps as well as the eventual commercialization of Google's Other Bets.

02/05/19

WELS

02/05/19NO CHANGETarget $1300WELSOutperform

Wells Fargo remains bullish on Alphabet despite mixed Q4 results

Wells Fargo analyst Robert Coolbrith notes that Alphabet reported mixed Q4 results, with gross revenue of $39.3B and revenue ex-TAC of $31.8B both modestly outperforming his estimates, but significantly higher than expected Other Cost of Revenue and R&D expense driving a 5% operating income miss versus his model. Despite relatively unrestrained expense growth in the quarter, the analyst came away encouraged by management commentary indicating moderating headcount growth and a meaningful deceleration in CapEx growth in 2019. Coolbrith reiterates an Outperform rating and $1,300 price target on the shares.

MSFTMicrosoft

$106.61

1.33 (1.26%)

01/31/19

FBCO

01/31/19NO CHANGETarget $125FBCOOutperform

Microsoft fundamentals intact, says Credit Suisse

Credit Suisse analyst Brad Zelnick notes that strong Microsoft Azure revenue growth is the highlight of an otherwise in line December quarter and reinforces his thesis that it remains a key beneficiary of the migration to public and hybrid cloud. He reiterates an Outperform rating and $125 price target on the shares.

01/31/19

MSCO

01/31/19NO CHANGETarget $140MSCOOverweight

Microsoft core secular drivers remain strong, says Morgan Stanley

Microsoft's key secular growth drivers sustained well in Q2, with an acceleration to 22% commercial bookings growth and Azure sustaining 76% growth, which comes in contrast to mounting investor concerns on weakening IT spending and negative data points from component suppliers, Morgan Stanley analyst Keith Weiss tells investors. However, component shortages led to a weaker Windows OEM business, which reminds investors that "transactional risks remain in the Microsoft business," Weiss added. Citing his view that Microsoft remains the best positioned name in tech for the emerging Hybrid Cloud architecture, he keeps an Overweight rating and $140 price target on the stock.

01/31/19

KEYB

01/31/19NO CHANGETarget $125KEYBOverweight

Microsoft secular cloud growth remains intact, says KeyBanc

KeyBanc analyst Brent Bracelin notes that underlying cloud fundamentals for Microsoft remain robust, albeit masked this quarter by a $404M shortfall in Gaming and Windows. The analyst continues to be a buyer of Microsoft on robust cloud trends. He reiterates an Overweight rating and $125 price target on the shares.

Stifel analyst Brad Reback said Microsoft delivered another solid quarter and he thinks short-term PC and foreign exchange issues should not be allowed to obscure the company's strength from its leverage to several secular trends, such as hyperscale/hybrid cloud, SaaS, and gaming. These drivers, coupled with a favorable IT backdrop, Win10 replacement cycle, strong execution, and expense discipline, should enable continued operating profit and free cash flow growth, said Reback, who keeps a Buy rating and $120 price target on Microsoft shares.

TWTRTwitter

$30.49

0.26 (0.86%)

02/07/19

BARD

02/07/19NO CHANGETarget $33BARDNeutral

Twitter price target lowered to $33 from $35 at Baird

Baird analyst Colin Sebastian lowered his price target on Twitter to $33 and kept his Neutral rating, saying that while its Q4 results were strong, the slowdown in growth is a "yellow flag". The analyst adds that the MAUs were roughly in line, and the management noted that the decline in MAUs continues to relate to GDPR standards and product changes.

02/08/19

JPMS

02/08/19NO CHANGETarget $40JPMSOverweight

Twitter thesis unchanged despite higher spending, says JPMorgan

JPMorgan analyst Doug Anmuth lowered his price target for Twitter to $40 from $44 following the company's Q4 results and reiterates an Overweight rating on the name. Twitter's investments in long-term growth at the expense of near-term profit "make perfect sense," but are still a bit higher than expected and require "recalibration" for 2019, Anmuth tells investors in a post-earnings research note. He believes Q1 will be the low point on operating income growth and that the increased spending does not change the overall thesis on Twitter shares. The stock remains one of the analyst's top picks and is on his firm's Analyst Focus List.

02/08/19

MKMP

02/08/19NO CHANGETarget $43MKMPBuy

MKM Partners sees no change to Twitter's improving fundamentals

MKM Partners analyst Rob Sanderson kept his Buy rating and $43 price target on Twitter after its Q4 results. The analyst says that while earnings and revenues produced "meaningful upside", the decline in Twitter stock price was driven by the "disappointing DAU disclosure and expense guidance." Sanderson further contends that while the quarter marks a reset in expectations, he sees "no change to strong and improving underlying fundamentals at Twitter".

Despite Apple (AAPL) itself offering no comments on the subject or giving any indication to investors of its intentions, potential acquisition targets for the company have been widely discussed in press reports on a regular basis, JPMorgan analyst Samik Chatterjee tells investors in a research note. The speculation has included a wide range of industries, from automobile manufacturers, like Tesla (TSLA), to information platforms, like Twitter (TWTR), adds the analyst. He believes the speculation has likely in part been driven by the $130B of net cash on Apple's balance sheet. Chatterjee finds three industries to be of the most strategic value to Apple for potential deals: Video gaming, smart home speaker and video content. These areas provide potential growth opportunities to leverage Apple's services over a wider installed base, says the analyst. In video gaming, he sees Activision Blizzard (ATVI) as being the best strategic fit for Apple. In smart home speaker, Chatterjee believes Sonos (SONO) offers the best strategic of the names mentioned in the press. And in video content, the analyst views Netflix (NFLX) as the best strategic fit, although he "appreciates a combination is less likely as Netflix is unlikely to be a seller for a modest premium."

As previously reported, Craig-Hallum analyst Anthony Stoss downgraded Cirrus Logic (CRUS) to Hold from Buy as likely lower volumes at Apple (AAPL) this year will be hard to offset even with content expansion at Samsung (SSNLF) and other Android OEMs given Apple is about 83% of revenues. The analyst lowered his price target on the shares to $38 from $44.

01/31/19

WEDB

01/31/19NO CHANGETarget $200WEDBOutperform

Apple taking small step in right direction, says Wedbush

Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives says that while the overall headline numbers were not a surprise, he would characterize Apple's March guidance as "better than feared" with many of the bears whispering that a sub $55B revenue guidance was potentially in the cards versus Apple's $55B-$59B range. The analyst reiterates an Outperform rating and $200 price target on the shares.

Tigress Financial analyst Ivan Feinseth kept his Hold rating on IBM after another set of mixed results reported for Q4 last week. The analyst notes that the company's strong Cognitive Solutions performance continues to be offset by ongoing weakness in Systems revenue. Feinseth adds that its Business Performance is also trending, but sees IBM "starting to benefit from the growing performance of its Cognitive Solutions and Global Business Services business lines", driven by "growing demand for analytics, IoT, and security services."

01/23/19

BMOC

01/23/19NO CHANGETarget $147BMOCMarket Perform

IBM price target raised to $147 from $145 at BMO Capital

BMO Capital analyst Keith Bachman raised his price target on IBM (IBM) to $147 after the company's better than expected Q4 revenues in its "three important business units of Cognitive, GBS and Tech Services." The analyst also contends that while the outlook for FY19 earnings was below consensus, he sees progress on revenues as more important for the company. Bachman adds that he remains constructive on the impact of IBM's pending Red Hat (RHT) deal improving its top line, but does not see the current valuation for IBM as sufficiently compelling for a more constructive view, keeping his Market Perform rating.

01/23/19

WELS

01/23/19NO CHANGETarget $140WELSMarket Perform

IBM price target lowered to $140 from $155 at Wells Fargo

Wells Fargo analyst Ed Caso lowered his price target for IBM to $140 from $155 to reflect a lower market multiple and the lack of 2020-2021 share repurchase expected, offset by signs of further progress in its digital transition. The analyst reiterates a Market Perform rating on the shares.

02/11/19

PIPR

02/11/19NO CHANGEPIPR

Piper storage survey positive for Pure Storage, Nutanix, NetApp

Piper Jaffray conducted its fiscal Q4 Storage Reseller Survey by collecting feedback from 28 resellers and distributors. While only five of 14 vendors had net positive results versus six of the 14 last quarter, the firm saw "strong results" for Pure Storage (PSTG), Rubrik, Nutanix (NTNX), Veeam and NetApp (NTAP), analyst Andrew Nowinski told investors earlier in a research note. Pure Storage also had the strongest pipeline heading into the April quarter, added the analyst. The company's results sharply improved in the survey, with 67% of resellers citing "Above Plan" results, the highest level seen in three years, says Nowinski. The stock in early trading is up 19c to $18.47. Of those surveyed by Piper, 36% of resellers said they saw a negative impact from the U.S. government shutdown, with Dell (DELL), HP/3PAR (HPQ) and IBM (IMB) the most impacted.

INTCIntel

$50.02

1.24 (2.54%)

01/31/19

LYNX

01/31/19NO CHANGETarget $43LYNX

Lynx says Swan selection as CEO of Intel 'a mild disappointment'

Lynx Equity Strategies analysts Jahanara Nissar and KC Rajkumar believe the downside reaction to Intel's naming Bob Swan as permanent CEO is "justified," adding that the "Street was looking for excitement, it instead got a mild disappointment." The analysts took a point off their multiple applied to the stock to account for "a modest CEO-premium" that they think had been built in and lowered their price valuation on Intel to $43 from $48 following the announcement of Swan's appointment.

01/31/19

01/31/19NO CHANGE

Mizuho says Intel CEO hire may open competitive window for AMD

Mizuho analyst Vijay Rakesh maintained a Buy rating on both Intel (INTC) and AMD (AMD) after Intel announced that CFO Bob Swan would take over as permanent CEO, after spending 6-7 months searching for an internal and external CEO candidate. The analyst said the reaction to the announcement was "muted," but noted that it could open up a window for AMD "to be more competitive on the Server and GPU technology roadmap."

Rosenblatt analyst Hans Mosesmann said the selection of Bob Swan, Intel's interim CEO for the past 7 months, as permanent CEO is a "solid choice" given that his performance from a financial perspective "has been top notch" and he is held in high regard by Wall Street. However, the appointment suggests the Board "is content with a steady-as-she-goes path" and the Street was probably expecting a more aggressive move, said Mosesmann, who keeps a Sell rating on Intel shares.

02/11/19

MSCO

02/11/19NO CHANGETarget $33MSCOEqual Weight

Micron 'ahead of itself' in short term, says Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley analyst Joseph Moore said he expects demand for cloud, PCs and phones to improve seasonally through the year, but he contends that buying DRAM stocks "because cloud spending will come back" is highly likely to end in disappointment as he thinks DRAM is fundamentally oversupplied. Moore sees 2019 as a difficult year for DRAM even with a sharp demand recovery in spending and would rather buy Intel (INTC) or NVIDIA (NVDA) for a cloud recovery, he tells investors. He maintains an Equal Weight rating on Micron (MU) shares, but added that he thinks the stock is "ahead of itself in the short term."

Credit Suisse analyst Stephen Ju raised his price target for Facebook to $210 from $208 following quarterly results. As the discounted pricing is proving to be attractive to advertisers as they look to adopt the new medium, the analyst would not be surprised to see ad impressions see faster increases as Facebook looks to drive faster revenue growth. He reiterates an Outperform rating on the shares.

02/01/19

ARGS

02/01/19NO CHANGETarget $206ARGSBuy

Facebook earnings growth strong but decelerating, says Argus

Argus analyst Joseph Bonner kept his Buy rating and $206 price target on Facebook, saying the company's Q4 earnings growth remained strong albeit decelerating. The analyst further states that the management has warned about more slowdowns coming in 2019, even as the company pivots to support new applications. With Messenger and WhatApp platforms having reached critical mass of users to start to get monetized, Bonner also raises his FY19 EPS view to $9.17 from $8.75.

02/05/19

JPMS

02/05/19NO CHANGETarget $1250JPMSOverweight

JPMorgan keeps Overweight on Alphabet but continues to prefer other FANGs

Alphabet's (GOOG) Q4 "continues to prove challenging on the bottom line" as the company now had a string of lighter than expected Q4's in terms of operating income and margins, JPMorgan analyst Doug Anmuth tells investors in a post-earnings research note. While the quarter is seasonally strong for advertising, it also comes with higher content costs for YouTube, more marketing spending, and a spike in low-margin hardware, says the analyst. Overall, though, Anmuth believes Alphabet continues to execute well as evidenced by both the acceleration and long-term stability in its sales growth. He maintains an Overweight rating on the shares, but prefers other FANG names Facebook (FB), Amazon (AMZN) and Netflix (NFLX) to Google. The analyst lowered his price target for the latter to $1,250 from $1,270.

01/31/19

KEYB

01/31/19NO CHANGETarget $195KEYBOverweight

Facebook engagement trends remain solid, says KeyBanc

KeyBanc analyst Andy Hargreaves continues to recommend buying Facebook. Engagement trends remain "solid" and its effectiveness as an ad platform continues to grow, he contends. Further, the analyst notes that management appears focused on the appropriate issues and has a clear strategic approach to improving the safety and health of its platform, which could improve sentiment. Hargreaves reiterates an Overweight rating and $195 price target on the shares.

ORCLOracle

$51.33

0.11 (0.21%)

01/09/19

01/09/19DOWNGRADE

Fly Intel: Top five analyst downgrades

Catch up on today's top five analyst downgrades with this list compiled by The Fly: 1. Nike (NKE) downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at Baird with analyst Jonathan Komp citing its relative valuation and concerns about its high P/E premium. 2. Oracle (ORCL) downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Barclays with analyst Raimo Lenscho saying the competitive situation in the company's core database market and cloud is "not getting easier." 3. Wendy's (WEN) downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at Wedbush. 4. Booking Holdings (BKNG) downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Morgan Stanley and to Hold from Buy at Jefferies. 5. United Continental (UAL) downgraded to Underperform from In-Line at Imperial Capital while Delta Air Lines (DAL) was downgraded to In-Line from Outperform. This list is just a portion of The Fly's full analyst coverage. To see The Fly's full Street Research coverage, click here.

01/15/19

MSCO

01/15/19DOWNGRADETarget $53MSCOEqual Weight

Oracle downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley analyst Keith Weiss downgraded Oracle to Equal Weight from Overweight as he does not see the catalysts for a positive inflection in revenue growth coming in 2019. The prospects of a strong database cycle have been pushed further out, added Weiss, who thinks limited operating income growth thru calendar 2019 will not be enough to drive its multiple higher. Based on current multiples applied to his calendar 2020 EPS estimate, Weiss cut his price target for Oracle shares to $53 from $57.

01/15/19

01/15/19DOWNGRADE

Fly Intel: Top five analyst downgrades

Catch up on today's top five analyst downgrades with this list compiled by The Fly: 1. PG&E (PCG) downgraded to Sell from Buy at Argus with analyst Jacob Kilstein citing the company's announcement that it will declare bankruptcy based on the potential for $30B in liability costs related to its role in California wildfire, the lack of financing, and the absence of the state government intervention. 2. SL Green Realty (SLG) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Goldman Sachs with analyst Andrew Rosivach saying he believes the market will value at a lower multiple than real estate ownership. 3. Atlassian (TEAM) and Yext (YEXT) were downgraded to Underweight from Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley while Oracle (ORCL), VMware (VMW), and Autodesk (ADSK) were downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight. 4. Brookfield Business Partners (BBU) downgraded to Sector Perform at RBC Capital. 5. Edison International (EIX) downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at BofA/Merrill with analyst Julien Dumoulin-Smith citing the challenging operating environment in California following the PG&E (PCG) Chapter 11 filing. This list is just a portion of The Fly's full analyst coverage. To see The Fly's full Street Research coverage, click here.

01/09/19

ATLE

01/09/19INITIATIONTarget $45ATLEUnderweight

Oracle initiated with an Underweight at Atlantic Equities

Atlantic Equities analyst Dimitri Kallianiotis started Oracle with an Underweight rating and $45 price target as he believes that AI favors the dominant cloud providers in this "winner takes all" environment and thinks AI will reinforce the dominant position of the largest player in each market segment. This will exacerbate market share loss in applications at Oracle, driven by the decline in legacy on-premise solutions, Kallianiotis contends.